Football

Why CAF stripped Senegal of AFCON 2025 title despite final win over Morocco

Senegal beat Morocco in the 2025 Afcon final earlier by 1-0, thanks to an extra-time goal by Pape Gueye

No Neymar for Brazil's last friendlies before Ancelotti names his WC squad

Neymar was left out of Brazil's friendlies in the United States this month. The 34-year-old former captain has struggled to be fit since he tore his ACL in October 2023. Brazil will play France in Boston on March 26 and Croatia in Orlando four days later. "This is a squad that takes into account players who are 100% fit," Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti said on Monday. "We had important injuries to players like Eder Militao, Bruno Guimaraes, Estevao, Rodrygo." Neymar didn't play well on Sunday in Santos' 1-1 draw with Corinthians in the Brazilian league. Hours later, Neymar told media at an event in Sao Paulo he was "upset and sad" for not being in Brazil's squad for the two friendlies. "But my focus remains, day after day, training after training, match after match. We will reach our goal, there's still the final squad," Neymar said. The World Cup squad will be announced on May 18. The team's last warmup will be on May 31 against Panama in Rio de Janeiro. Brazil: Goalkeepers: Ali

Iran women footballers granted asylum, spotted training in Brisbane

Two players from the Iranian women's football team have joined a practice session with a professional club in Brisbane in their first publicly-shared appearance since it emerged they had been granted asylum in Australia. Fatemeh Pasandideh and Atefeh Ramezanisadeh were pictured smiling and wearing the club's colors as they posed alongside a women's elite squad in photos posted to Instagram by the Brisbane Roar on Monday. The update came as the rest of Iran's soccer delegation left Malaysia bound for Oman, apparently capping a tumultuous episode that saw Australia's government offering most of the squad humanitarian visas after the team was knocked out of the Women's Asian Cup. Seven women initially accepted the asylum offer before five changed their minds and said they would return to Iran. Brisbane Roar, which plays in Australia's elite A-League Women's domestic competition, posted a welcome to "Fatemeh and Atefeh" on Instagram, along with an emoji of a lioness, a nod to the name t

Champions League: Real, PSG and Bodo Glimt protect 3-goal leads in Ro16

Protecting three-goal leads, Champions League heavyweights Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain will look to clinch their places in the quarterfinals on Tuesday. So, amazingly, will tiny Bod/Glimt. There's a one-sided look to the first batch of second-leg matches to be completed in the round of 16, as Madrid and PSG arrive in England with a 3-0 lead over Manchester City and a 5-2 lead over Chelsea, respectively. This could be a tough week for the much-hyped Premier League, as all six of its round-of-16 representatives failed to win across the first legs. Arsenal looks best placed of the English teams to advance and will take on Bayer Leverkusen in London on Tuesday with the score at 1-1. Then there's Bod/Glimt, in its debut season in the Champions League and easily the least-heralded team to make it through to the knockout stage. The Norwegian club leads Sporting Lisbon 3-0 from the first leg and is looking to complete another upset, having eliminated Inter Milan - last season's .

Cricket to Football: Sporting events affected by West Asia conflict

Major sporting events across the Middle East have been cancelled or postponed, while travel disruptions at key transit hubs have also impacted athletes and teams travelling for competitions.

Why Chelsea FC was fined and handed a 1-year suspended transfer ban?

The financial irregularities came to light in 2022, when American investors Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital acquired the club from Abramovich for £2.5 billion ($3.2 billion).

Why Chelsea FC was fined and handed a 1-year suspended transfer ban?

The financial irregularities came to light in 2022, when American investors Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital acquired the club from Abramovich for £2.5 billion ($3.2 billion).

Champions League: Premier League clubs up for an uphill task in 2nd leg

Arsenal hosts Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday with the tie locked at 1-1. The Gunners, currently topping the Premier League, look best placed to represent England in the quarterfinals.

Barcelona members re-elect Joan Laporta for five more years as president

Joan Laporta was reelected as the president of FC Barcelona for another five years after winning a leadership vote among members of the Spanish soccer powerhouse. Shortly after midnight in Barcelona, the club announced Laporta had won. His only rival, Victor Font, had earlier conceded defeat and congratulated Laporta "for his unquestionable victory." With the counting now over, Barcelona said Laporta received 68% of the votes. The club said that more than 48,000 of Barca's 114,000 club members cast ballots at Camp Nou Stadium or at four other voting stations across Catalonia in northeastern Spain and in Andorra. "Thanks to this marvelous club, where its fans still vote to decide who will be their president and executive board," Laporta said in his victory speech inside an auditorium at Camp Nou, flanked by members of his incoming board. Laporta successfully presided over Barca from 2003-10 during the glory years of coach Pep Guardiola and a young Lionel Messi. He was voted back

West Asia conflict forces cancellation of Messi vs Yamal Finalissima clash

The Finalissima had initially been scheduled for March 27 in Qatar. However, organisers were forced to reconsider the venue after tensions in West Asia

Manchester City drop the ball as Arsenal's PL title run gains momentum

Haaland's drop in form coincides with Pep Guardiola's tactical tinkering following the arrival of Antoine Semenyo in January.

Lionel Messi faces backlash after White House visit with Donald Trump

Last week, Messi attended a reception at the White House celebrating his U.S.-based team, Inter Miami, winning the 2025 MLS Cup.

Bayern Munich held to 1-1 draw at Bayer Leverkusen as Dortmund closes in

Bayern Munich came from behind and finished the match with nine players in a 1-1 draw at Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday, allowing Borussia Dortmund to close to within nine points of the Bundesliga leader. Luis Diaz, who scored the equalizer following Aleix Garcia's opener, was sent off in the 84th minute for a second yellow card. Nicolas Jackson had received a red card in the 42nd minute. Leverkusen took the lead in the sixth minute after Montrell Culbreath stole the ball off Diaz and fed it to Patrik Schick, who set up Garcia on the edge of the box. The midfielder slotted home with a deflected shot. The hosts defended well to contain Bayern's attempts to come back, and frustration showed when Jackson was sent off before halftime for a late challenge on Martin Terrier. Bayern played with third-choice goalkeeper Sven Ulreich because Manuel Neuer has a calf issue and backup Jonas Urbig was concussed in the 6-1 win over Atalanta midweek in the Champions League. Ulreich denied an effort

Max Dowman becomes youngest Premier League scorer as Arsenal get late win

Max Dowman, a 16-year-old Arsenal winger, became the Premier League's youngest ever scorer with a remarkable stoppage-time goal in his team's 2-0 win over Everton. Dowman collected the ball midway in his own half, dribbled around two Everton players and raced clear unchallenged from the halfway line to tap into an empty net, with Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford stranded upfield having gone forward for a corner. An English soccer prodigy, Dowman - at 16 years, 73 days - was playing just his third Premier League match after two previous substitute appearances at the start of the season. "He doesn't seem to be fazed by the occasion or the moment or the context or the opponent, he just plays so naturally," Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said. "He makes decisions to make things happen, and what he delivered was incredible." Asked what he said to Dowman after deciding to bring him on, Arteta replied: "Go and do your thing and win us the game." Dowman broke the record of former Everton

Three Iran women football players withdraw asylum bid, leave Australia

Another three members of the Iran's women's soccer team who accepted refugee visas to stay in Australia have decided to return to their homeland, an Australian government minister said on Sunday. The departure leaves three of an initial seven squad members in Australia. "Overnight, three members of the Iranian Women's Football Team made the decision to join the rest of the team on their journey back to Iran," Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said in a statement. "After telling Australian officials they had made this decision, the players were given repeated chances to talk about their options," Burke added. Iran's team arrived in Australia for the Women's Asian Cup last month, before the war in the Middle East began on Feb. 28. Initially, six players and a support staff member from a squad list of 26 players accepted humanitarian visas to stay in Australia before the rest of the Iranian contingent flew from Sydney to Malaysia on March 9. Another later changed her mind and left ..

China through to Women's Asian Cup semis with 2-0 extra-time win vs Taiwan

Defending champions China defeated Taiwan 2-0 in the Women's Asian Cup quarterfinals on Saturday to book a semifinal against host Australia and a place at the 2027 World Cup. After 90 minutes ended goalless in a match involving c ountries with geopolitical tensions, Shao Ziqin finally broke the deadlock three minutes into extra time before a late own goal sealed a deserved win for the dominant Chinese team. On Friday, Sam Kerr scored one goal and created another as Australia advanced and secured a World Cup spot with a 2-1 win over North Korea. South Korea faced Uzbekistan later Saturday in another quarterfinal at Sydney. On Sunday, Japan heads into the final quarterfinal against the Philippines, also in Sydney, with three wins from three games and a tournament-leading 17 goals without conceding. The semifinals are set for Tuesday and Wednesday with the final to be played next Saturday in Sydney. World Cup spots ========== All four semifinalists at the Women's Asian Cup qualify

Chelsea's Pedro Neto charged by UEFA for pushing ball boy at PSG game

Chelsea winger Pedro Neto was charged by UEFA on Thursday for pushing a ballboy during the Champions League loss at Paris Saint-Germain. Neto faces a one-game ban for the charge UEFA said was "unsporting behavior," with a disciplinary decision to follow "in due course." Chelsea trails the defending champion 5-2 after the first leg on Wednesday in the round of 16. The return game is on Tuesday in London. Neto shoved the boy in the chest for appearing to hold onto the ball instead of giving it back to the player late in the game when Chelsea trailed 4-2. Neto later apologized to the boy and gave him his game jersey. "With the emotions of the game, we were losing, I wanted to pick up the ball," Neto told British broadcaster TNT Sports. "I gave him a little push. I saw that I hurt him and I am sorry, as I'm not like this.

Valverde scores first-half hat trick as Real beat City in Champions League

There was an uncertainty among Real Madrid fans before their Champions League match against Manchester City. It has a new and untested coach, recently lost two league games in a row, and last weekend required a last-minute deflection to beat Celta Vigo. Federico Valverde dispelled their doubts in a scintillating first 45 minutes, scoring a sublime hat trick that put the home team in the driver's seat for this much-awaited last 16 tie. Valverde completed a quick counterattack and rounded goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma with a deft touch to score the opener after 20 minutes. He ran on to a pass from Vinicius Junior and then fired home a low shot with his weaker left foot seven minutes later to make it 2-0. The Uruguay midfielder saved the best for last, taking Brahim Diaz's clever chip and then knocking it over the outstretched leg of Marc Guehi before volleying past Donnarumma to make it 3-0 three minutes before halftime.

Champions League: Neves, Dembele return from injury as PSG beat Chelsea 5-2

Joao Neves and Ousmane Dembele returned from injury to help Paris Saint-Germain rout Chelsea 5-2 in the last 16 of the Champions League. They combined to set up the first goal after 10 minutes and Dembele scored with a brilliant solo effort late in the first half. The third goal followed a blunder from Chelsea goalkeeper Filip Jrgensen, who passed the ball straight to PSG forward Bradley Barcola. He fed substitute Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who then passed inside to Vitinha and he neatly lobbed Jrgensen. Kvaratskhelia added two late goals allowing PSG to take a healthy lead into next Tuesday's second leg at Stamford Bridge in London. "We showed we are capable of anything. We have to carry on like this," Kvaratskhelia said. "We conceded goals but we have to analyze the mistakes we made." Ballon d'Or moment Dembele's speed and lucid thinking on his goal showed that the Ballon d'Or winner is getting back to his best in an injury-hit season. He latched onto a pass near the halfway line

Iran women's football team faces threats after anthem protest in Australia

The situation escalated after members of the Iranian squad refused to sing the national anthem before their opening match against South Korea women's national football team.